The Tumblr blog of Apple TV Plus drama “Pachinko” actor Jin Ha in which he posted photos of elderly Korean women that appeared to be taken without their permission and which prompted accusations of sexual harassment has been deleted.
As of writing, Jin Ha’s “Flowers in Bloom” Tumblr blog is no longer accessible. It was still accessible as of March 25.
The deletion of Jin Ha’s Tumblr blog came after controversy arose over his photos, which Koreans and Korean media described as illegal photography while some of his descriptions of the photos were labeled as sexual harassment.
On March 25, the day “Pachinko” was released on Apple TV Plus, a Korean netizen posted online and accused Jin Ha of illegal photography and sexual harassment.
Jin Ha’s Tumblr blog titled “Flowers in Bloom” contained hundreds of photos of Korean elderly women, taken mostly in the subway in South Korea, who are wearing clothes with floral prints. The photos showed the women's faces.
Jin Ha’s first post was published on July 14, 2010 and the last post was made on Sept. 6, 2011.
“I have noticed something. Elderly Korean women are staunchly devoted to wearing flower prints. Gaudy, chic, loud, subdued, multicolored, monochromatic--they rock it all,” Jin Ha wrote in the introduction to the blog.
He added, “Inspired by The Sartorialist, I have decided to launch a photography series fondly entitled ‘Flowers In Bloom’ to exhibit this captivating fashion trend in South Korea.” The Sartorialist is a fashion blog in New York City.
The photos appeared to have been taken without the women’s permission. A post on July 18, 2010 showed a photo of Jin Ha with her aunt and another woman and another photo of the two women carried the description, "These two lovely ladies were the only voluntary models I have encountered...”
In a post on Aug. 12, 2010 in which Jin Ha uploaded a photo of two women in a subway, he wrote, “I almost got caught with this model, but it was well worth the risk.”
A Korean netizen posted online on March 25 with the title “Korean-American actor in ‘Pachinko’ posted on blog of illegal filming of Korean grandmothers (post not taken down).”
The accuser wrote, “Korean-American actor Jin Ha, who appeared in ‘Pachinko,’ uploaded illegally filmed photos of Korean grandmothers on his portfolio website. Illegally taken photos and self-comments were posted for two years from 2010 to 2011, and have been released for more than 10 years until 2022.”
The poster picked descriptions from two posts from Jin Ha’s blog, which the accuser said were sexual harassments of grandmothers.
One is a post dated Aug. 16, 2010 in which Jin Ha uploaded a photo of a sleeping grandmother and wrote, “Working with such a provocative model, I found it hard to keep myself and my concupiscence under control.”
Another is a post dated Aug. 9, 2010 in which Jin Ha uploaded a photo of a woman wearing a blouse with large floral prints and wrote, “Now we have an excuse to stare directly at her right nipple.”
“Illegal filming is also a problem, and it is very unpleasant to write down what you feel as if you were criticizing grandmothers. I am writing this in hopes that the actor apologizes to the victims and takes down the post because it has become a public issue,” the Korean added.
A number of Jin Ha’s posts made fun of how elderly Korean women dressed.
“A bouquet of pink roses makes tantric sexlove with a white Bengal tiger,” Jin Ha described a photo of a Korean woman on Aug. 21, 2010.
“Her handbag is getting drycleaned,” Jin Ha described a woman in a subway with a backpack on July 17, 2010.
“Even dear leader Kim Jong Il's sister cannot deny the power of flower,” Jin Ha described a woman in a post on Sept. 5, 2011.
Under Section 14 of South Korea’s law “Act On Special Cases Concerning The Punishment, Etc. of Sexual Crimes,” it is stated that “A person who takes photographs or videos of another person's body, which may cause any sexual stimulus or shame against the will of the person who was shot, by using a camera or other mechanism which has functions similar thereto, shall be punished by imprisonment with labor for not more than seven years or by a fine not exceeding 50 million won ,” according to a copy of the law posted on the Korean Law Information Center website.
The law added that “a person who distributes, sells, leases, provides, or openly exhibits or shows (hereinafter referred to as "distribution, etc.") a photograph taken under paragraph (1) or its duplicate (including a duplicate of its duplicate; hereafter in this paragraph, the same shall apply) or a person who makes the distribution, etc. of a photograph or video taken under paragraph (1) or its duplicate against the will of the person shot after the photograph or video taken under paragraph (1) was not against the will of the person shot (including a person who takes his/her body himself/herself) as at the time such photograph or video was taken, shall be punished by imprisonment with labor for not more than seven years or by a fine not exceeding 50 million won.”
In “Pachinko,” Jin Ha, a Korean-American, plays the role of Solomon Baek, the grandson of Sunja (played by Youn Yuh-jung).